Official: Long-distance surcharges on landlines unfair, should be abolished
By PAUL MONIES NewsOK.com on Sep 12, 2013, at 2:31 AM Updated on 9/12/13 at 3:08 AM
Bob Anthony: The corporation commissioner says long-distance surcharge on landlines should be abolished.
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A telephone surcharge on long-distance calls from landlines that helps provide phone service in rural areas is unfair to consumers and should be abolished, Oklahoma Corporation Commissioner Bob Anthony said.
He said Tuesday that the state's annual $37 million High Cost Fund "is not a workable way to raise funds." The fund began in 1996 to help ease the transition for rural telephone companies after changes in the long-distance calling market.
Customers with landlines pay surcharges of between 3.1 cents and 4.7 cents for each minute of an in-state, long-distance call. But customers are making fewer minutes of long-distance calls from landlines, opting instead to make the calls from mobile phones.
The fees for the fund fall heavily on AT&T's landline customers, who pay almost 70 percent of the $37 million each year. More than 30 rural telephone carriers receive money from the fund.
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pmonies@opubco.com
Original Print Headline: Proposal would nix landlines' long-distance fees
Tech
Brazil plans to divorce itself from the U.S.-centric Internet over Washington's widespread online spying, a move that many experts fear will be a potentially dangerous first step toward fracturing a global network built with minimal interference by governments.
In the smartphone world, Android has been a smashing success. It's evolved into a strong and easy-to-use experience, and it's the platform of choice for most of the top-selling devices out there.
